


Of detectives and doctors (Very specific ones)

by Igraine_smiley



Category: Endeavour (TV)
Genre: Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, Fluff, Fluff without Plot, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-24
Updated: 2017-05-05
Packaged: 2018-09-19 13:53:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,203
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9444074
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Igraine_smiley/pseuds/Igraine_smiley
Summary: A series of short stories centered on DeBryn and Morse. Each one is inspired by a writing prompt I found on tumblr. Everything is fluff and nothing hurts.





	1. That was smooth

**Author's Note:**

> This is the first time I publish a fanfic and I'm really nervous because this fandom has amazing writers. I haven't written seriously in English for ages so I hope everything makes sense. I'm happy with my little story and there're more to come :)

With three days before Christmas, Morse has been working on a case with bizarre murders and of course DeBryn was worried. Morse seem to have the.. you can say talent to getting hurt in the most unusual and sometimes plain weird circumstances. This talent of his is a running joke between them but that didn't make the feeling in Max's heart less heavy. Drowning himself in his job seemed to work for most part of the day but as time passed and the night took over Oxford his mind couldn’t focus in anything else but Morse.

Reading seemed like a good idea but not a successful one, words formed chains with no meaning as the hours passed. He must had fell asleep because the next thing He saw was a very tired Morse getting into the house. His Hair was a coppery mess and He was looking pale even under the warm fairy lights 

 

“Are you alright?" He asked trying to clear away the clouds of sleep. Morse walked into the room looking knackered. His eyes were red, DeBryn knew He hadn’t been sleeping properly in days but the detective will only notice it when the adrenaline of the case wore off and as always He won't regret the lack of sleep. There weren’t any visible injuries so Max let himself breathe. 

“Yes, I’m fine” replied Morse as He collapsed on the couch next to him. He took the forgotten book from his lap setting it aside and put a comforting hand on DeBryn’s knee leaning closer to his face “don’t worry”

“Forgive me for not believing in your “I’m fine”, dearest” scolded DeBryn half joking, half serious. He knew the tendency of his partner of minimise any kind of injury. Stabbed? It’s just a cut, shot? It’s just a scratch. Max was convinced that if Morse wouldn’t be as scared as He was that time, He would have told him He was attacked by a cat instead of a tiger. Morse seemed to read his mind and arched an eyebrow.

“No injuries, I promise” He whispered closing his doe eyes and dropping his head on DeBryn chest “I’m just tired”

“A Christmas miracle perhaps?” DeBryn laughed relieved that Morse was safe and in his arms. He buried his face into Morse’s copper hair feeling relaxed for the first time in days. He could feel the detective's muscules relaxing and the rhythm of his breath soothing. The fairy lights seemed to be playing a symphony making the room cozy. They stayed there in a comfortable silence for a moment, Morse with his head against DeBryn chest while the doctor caressed his back softly.

Morse suddenly turned around and gently pressed his lips against DeBryn’s. A bit surprised Max looped his arms around him and as the kissing turned more passionate DeBryn took his glasses off.

“I thought you were tired” He teased with a grin as He left a trail of kisses on the detective neck. 

“I can show you I’m not that tired Doctor” Morse remarked in the same tone pushing Max against the sofa

“Mmm… Are we roleplaying now?” asked Max smiling against Morse’s lips "Who are you then?"

“Hopefully not one of your patients” giggled Morse as He unbuttoned Max's shirt. It seems his partner started to internalise his morbid humour…at a very anticlimactic time.

“That was smooth” laughed Debryn and grinning He added "Not really, that was awful! but I’m sure we can manage to find a role for you, don't worry”


	2. Freckles

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> DeBryn being schmoopy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the schmoopiest thing I've ever written (And I love it) but I read the dialogue prompt (That's in italics in the work) and I thought of these two. I think my english skills are slowly returning.

It was too late to be working but there was a silver lining for them, at least it was summer and They weren't freezing in the middle of a field. There were better ways to spend time with Morse than over a dead body, of course Max would have preferred to stay in bed discussing poetry and the detective would have preferred anything else but being in that field. This time the cause of death was accidental and for once Morse didn’t seem to think otherwise. Silence dominated the place, they were in the middle of nowhere after all. It was peaceful like only great extensions of nothing could be, everything felt empty and there were only a few people left at the scene. It wasn't that bad for them but it was fatal for the man lying on the ground. It was an unfortunate farming accident that ended the man’s life but the fact that It was not a murder didn’t make the scene less bloody. 

DeBryn was taking some notes while Morse focused his sight on the stars. If you didn’t know him you would have thought He was star gazing but Max knew He was avoiding the blood covered grass.

“Counting stars Morse?” The doctor teased without looking at the detective while He scribbled on his notepad. 

_“It’s pointless to count stars”_ Answered Morse with a soft sigh. He shifted his gaze from the stars to Max’s eyes that were much more interesting, also He really didn’t want to see the body.

 _“It’s also pointless to count freckles but I know you have thirty six on the edge of your left hand”_ Max chuckled knowing how corny He must have sounded but that didn’t make the statement less true. The doctor had never being interested in astronomy but he can spent hours finding constellations in Morse's sea of freckles. He fixed his eyes on Morse who looked at him like He had gone completely bonkers. The detective blushed and tried to covered it by looking down, big mistake, He did what He was trying to avoid so much. 

“How could you say something like that in front of a dead body?” He retorted looking at least two shades paler. He gave DeBryn an irritated look but with a faint twinkle. Fiddling with his feet He focused his attention back to the stars, pretending to ignore Max. 

“My apologies, I shall continue on the way home” He wanted to sound worried, really but He loved bantering with the detective. Morse scoffed indignant and started to walk away but He walked away towards DeBryn's car. Max smiled.


	3. Max's hero

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The fluff is back! A cat, Max, Morse and Thursday! Morse is being reckless, Thursday is not amused and Max is happy He's got his cat back.

It was one of those magical evenings when DeBryn didn’t have to go to the hospital and He was determined to enjoy it even though his dear cat Eliot was still missing. Eliot was a lazy cat and He rarely left the house so it was logical for Max to be worried. Morse wasn't Eliot's greatest fan but He reassured Max that the grumpy cat was going to come back in his own time, that’s what cats do after all. The doctor decided to put a record on and forget about the world for a while. He was being successful at that when suddenly He was interrupted with a firm knock on the door. The sight He was confronted with when He opened the door was bizarre to say the least. There they were DI Thursday holding a tabby cat and a bloodied nose Morse by his side. Max was relieved and worried at the same time, an oxymoron of emotions that for some reason was almost always related to the copper haired detective. 

“Sorry to arrive so unexpectedly doctor but we were close by” Thursday didn’t look very happy, He was clearly worrying over Morse “I think this one belongs to you” 

The cat or the detective ? Thought Max, He would have taken that as a joke if his and Morse’s relationship wasn’t a secret. 

“Oh, yes indeed, come in” DeBryn took Eliot in his arms and let the men in. He gave Morse a questioning look that was completely ignored “I was starting to get worried about you, you naughty beast! May I ask why is **He** bleeding?”

“ _Because He’s an idiot_ ” Replied Thursday as a matter of factly as He helped Morse on the sofa. Eliot jumped from his owner's arms and settled himself next to the annoyed detective. 

“ _That’s new, I didn’t know idiocy caused nosebleed_ ” Replied the doctor getting closer to the pair “What happened?”

“We were doing an enquiry, Doctor when He spotted your cat on a tree” Thursday was done with Morse and It was understandable, the poor man had to deal with Morse putting himself in harm's way on first hand. 

“Really Morse, you are outdoing yourself trying to be Oxford’s hero” Max grabbed Morse’s cheek gently and angled his head to had a better look at his nose. The detective had blood dripping from it and his mouth was a big red mess, if He had seen himself, He would had fainted for sure. He also had a few scratches on his face that Max hoped Eliot was not responsible for.

“I don’t think his ambition was to to be Oxford’s hero” Said Thursday teasingly, Morse left out a indignant sound “I still can’t believe the stunt you pulled Morse”

“It was an accident” Tried to say Morse without moving his lips or head, He was clearly blushing but the redness of his blood disguised it. 

“Inspector Thursday you can leave him here if you need to go back to the station, I’ll fix him up” assured DeBryn 

“Thank you doctor” Answered Thursday while putting his hat on and gave Morse a serious look “you took the evening off Morse, you took a nasty blow on that stubborn head of yours”

“It was nothing, Sir” Replied Morse with a strained voice trying not to drip blood all over the place. 

“If I see you at the station I’m sending you back” warned Thursday “Goodbye Doctor. I’ll let myself out”

Following Thursday departure there was silence, Morse and Max were equally stunned by the weird interaction. 

“Oh right, I’ll fetch my case. Keep your head back and please try not to stain the sofa!” Max nagged “keep an eye on him Eliot”

As soon as He came back DeBryn started to clean the blood from his lover’s face, fixing the few cuts and making sure Morse hasn’t managed to broke his nose. Max focused on his task as always when a situation involves his profession. Morse had hit his head but He didn’t had a concussion or anything serious, the only thing severely damage was his ego. The silence keep going for several minutes, but it was a comfortable silence filled with each other company. 

“I think Mr. Thursday knows” Stated Morse breaking the spell and looking into Max’s eyes while He cleaned the scratches on his forehead. 

“ You think?” Max remarked while smirking “You should be a detective Morse, those deductive skills are sharp”

“I bet you think you are funny” replied Morse with a sigh

“ And handsome too, don’t you forget that” exclaimed the doctor putting his tools away and sitting next to the detective “You’ll live but you really should be more careful, you could have broken something”

“But I didn’t” announced Morse taking Max’s hand into his “I just got a bit dizzy up there, Eliot might have had a part in my downfall” 

Eliot didn't seem to care about the accusation as He laid peacefully besides Morse. 

“I’m sure it wasn't that high, I think you can add acrophobia to your list” commented Max giving Morse a chaste kiss on the lips avoiding his still sore nose

“I will, be sure about that” Morse agreed deepening the kiss. 

“Thank you for bringing Eliot back” whispered Max into the kiss “and I’m sorry in his behalf”

“You are welcome but you kind of owe me” Morse commented drawing apart and putting Eliot in his lap. 

“I fixed your nose so I think my debt is payed” Argued Max petting the tabby’s head “I can only give you a another kiss”

“I’ll accept it” Morse was getting getting closer to Max's lips but froze on the spot remembering something “What about Mr. Thursday ? “

“What about him?” asked Max amused “ He seems more bothered with your pig-headed ways than with us”

“Come on! I’m not that bad!” Exclaimed Morse, Max shut him up with a kiss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm pretty sure I've have read about DeBryn owning a cat in a fic before and it was called Eliot, so if you wrote that tell me and I'll credit you for that :) Maybe I imagined it haha


	4. Hopeless

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Morse and Debryn + a child

For Morse, Saturday off meant spending the afternoon and night at Max’s home. They had been dating for a few months when Max gave him the key of his house with a “don’t bring any murderers here”. It had been awkward at first but the eccentric doctor had blended into his life like He had always been there. Morse felt a warm feeling in his heart as he reached for the keys, He knew it was silly but he wouldn’t change it for anything in the world. 

Max’s house was cozy, full of books and a constant fragrance of Earl Grey and it was slowly becoming home. There were cat hairs here and there their source, Eliot, was known for his liking for scratching every wooden surface on sight. What was not part of the usual scenery was the presence of children but Morse could swear that He saw one running across the garden as He entered the house. 

“Max?, Are you here?” Morse asked raising his voice “ Max, I think there’s a child in your garden”

“Hello my dear Morse” greeted DeBryn appearing from the kitchen “ Don’t fret! That would be my niece, It was very last minute but I’m always happy to look after her”

“Oh! I could come back later if you are busy” rushed Morse feeling as He was intruding. Max’s told him about his family but He’s never met them and probably He never will but the doctor didn’t seem to mind having him there. He actually looked happy and excited to share time with them. 

“nonsense!” Exclaimed Max, pressing a comforting hand in the middle of Morse’s back like He was preventing the detective of escaping.”You are not getting out of this dear Morse”

A series of quick footsteps echo in the the living room and a small figure crossed the distance between the garden and the two men in a surprising speed. All Morse could see was a light blue and brown blur before a little girl stood before him looking very curious. 

“Uncle Max! Who is He?” Asked the girl in a ringing voice. She was doing what all children do, deciding if Morse was worth sharing her uncle’s attention or not. 

“This is my friend, Detective Morse” Said Max, something told Morse that He was up to be questioned over his line of work for a while. 

“Hello, I’m Maggie” The girl’s eyes lighted up. She couldn’t be older than six, looking closer Morse could see the similarities between Max and Maggie. “Are you really a detective? Like Sherlock Holmes? Have you solved any mysteries?”

“Eh, Nice to meet you” He replied shyly “ My name is Morse, and yes I’m a detective” He gave Max a reproaching look.

“Your name is weird but your hair is pretty!!” exclaimed Maggie with honestly _“Can I have a piece of it?”_

“Maggie! Don’t hassle Mr. Morse He’s just arrived” requested Max clearly drowning a laugh. 

“But his hair is so pretty, uncle Max!” Insisted Maggie pointing at Morse’s hair. 

“Indeed but it’s prettier on his head” remarked the doctor making Morse blush slightly. 

“I know what we can do! I’ll show you Eliot, You'll like him” declared Maggie doing little jumps that made her brown curly hair bounce. Of course Morse already knew Eliot, he had scars to prove it but He was going to humour the little girl and pretended to be surprised when He saw the tabby. 

It was a nice evening, They played with Eliot and Maggie tried to put him into a doll dress in front of a terrified Morse but Max assured him that the cat wouldn’t snap at little Maggie. Eliot as expected wasn’t happy but He was patient with the girl. They saw some telly, a show meant for children that Morse hadn’t seen in his life but Max and Maggie were clearly up to date with it. It had aliens, time travelling and the detective was clueless most of the time, but Maggie surprised exclamations and Max gentle giggles made it worth it.

When Max left them to prepare dinner the interrogation begun, Maggie was a big fan of detective stories. 

“Did you solved any mysteries?” The girl asked sitting next to him on the sofa

“A few” answered Morse unsure of how much information He should give to a little girl. 

“Do you have to wear a deerstalker hat?” wondered Maggie playing with her frilly dress. 

“No, I don’t” Morse realized he wasn't making the best conversation partner so he added “ I suppose that’s only a Sherlock Holmes thing”

“Do you have a sidekit.. No!” the child stopped to think, noting her mistake “Sidekick! like Watson to help you?”

“Not really but I have your uncle” He shouldn’t have said that thought Morse but really Max was the closest to a sidekick He had. As a detective He was probably the sidekick. Thursday's sidekick? that was a funny image. Maybe one day, He would have a sidekick to boss around. 

“He’s a doctor like Watson alright, but He won’t solve mysteries, He only likes fishing and reading!!” Exclaimed Maggie clearly indignant by her Uncle’s lack of interest in the detective trade.

“He solves his own mysteries I guess” Morse laughed sincerely 

Max interrupted the chat, luckily would say Morse, to called them to dinner. Morse was relieved He wasn’t asked about the gory details of his profession, that would had been hard to explained to a five- year-old. They ate over Maggie’s stories about her friends and parents and without noticing, the girl's bed time was over them. 

“I should go” Morse muttered while He and Max were waiting for Maggie to get ready to sleep. 

“Stay until she goes to bed maybe your police authority will make her go to sleep at a decent time and my sister won’t kill me” Max pleaded jokingly grabbing Morse´s hand lightly 

“That’s not how it works” noted Morse with a soft giggle 

“one can hope” replied Max giving Morse a quick kiss on the lips.

Bed time wasn’t as dramatic as Max made it seemed, Maggie asked Morse for a story and he told Her a not depressive version of the swan lake. It wasn't opera but ballet would do the trick. She loved it and fall asleep with a smile on her face. 

“It wasn’t that bad” teased Morse once in the living room. 

“She behaved better because you are her new toy” explained Max “I guess I’ll have to keep you around” 

“I’m glad you find me useful” snorted Morse getting closer and embracing Max. 

“you can come back tomorrow, we’ll bake empire cakes” The doctor whispered into Morse’s shoulder

“I will” He promised kissing Max on the head. The doctor ran his fingers through the detective unruly hair feeling how soft it was but He noticed something weird. With a close inspection He realized than one strand stopped in a weird and unnatural angle. 

“What happened to your hair?” Asked Max and then he put all the pieces together “ Oh Morse! Really?! She already has you around her finger! you are hopeless!”

Morse laughed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, I've wanted to write about Morse and Debryn + children so here it is. Maggie was a neighbour at first but then I rememberd Max had a niece He clearly loved in "Inspector Morse" so I rewrote everything. I can't remember Max's niece name and i couldn't find it, I'm quite sure She was called Margaret tho. So if you know her actual name tell me and I'll change it! Hope you enjoyed it :)


End file.
